Merchandising display rack



Sept 13, 1956 J. w. SUGDEN MERCHANDISING DISPLAY RACK Filed July 6, 1964 INVENTOR. I JOHN W. SUGDEN ATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,272,344 MERCHANDISING DISPLAY RACK John W. Sugden, 1810 Orchard Drive, Salt Lake City, Utah Filed July 6, 1964, Ser. No. 380,536 4 Claims. (Cl. 211-1) This invention relates to'merchandising racks for hanging articles, especially garments, such as dresses, suits, and coats, on display in a store for sales purposes.

Conventional racks on which merchandise is hung for both display and sales purposes leave much to be desired, especially with the emphasis that is being placed on attractive yet functional decor in modern store architecture and interior design.

A principal object in the making of this invention was to combine slim structural elements in an attractive manner to provide great strength and stability and maximum utility for the resulting structure as a rack, enabling various sizes and types of garments and other articles to be accommodated in groups, handy to potential customers on the sales fioor and presenting a pleasing appearance as a merchandise display.

Other objects were ease and economy of fabrication, lightness of weight for the completed structure so it can be conveniently moved from place to place on a sales floor, positive and convenient height adjustability for accommodating different groups of garments or other articles of merchandise, and a wide range of design possibilities to achieve variety of appearance and adaptation to particular interiors.

These objects were achieved by fabricating and welding rigid metal tubing, advantageously of polygonal cross-section, to form intersecting, crossed, and integral frames of rectangular configuration, and by securely but adjustably anchoring transverse hanger bars to the vertical members of the frames at selected heights.

The anchoring means are preferably strips, which are, secured to appropriate faces of the vertical frame members and which have respective series of closely spaced transverse slots extending along their lengths and hangerbar brackets removably secured within selected slots.

There are shown in the accompanying drawing rnerchandising display racks which constitute specific embodiments of the invention and are typical of what is presently regarded as the best mode of carrying out the invention in commercial practice. From the detailed description of these representative embodiments, other objects and features of the invention will become apparent.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 represents a perspective view of one form of rack in accordance with the invention showing several groups of different types of garments hanging thereon;

FIG. 2, a side elevation of the rack alone;

FIG. 3, a fragmentary horizontal section taken on the line 33 of FIG. 2 and drawn to a considerably larger scale;

FIG. 4, a fragmentary vertical sect-ion taken on the line 44 of FIG. 2 and also drawn to a considerably larger scale to show the details of the hanger-bar anchoring means;

FIG. 5, a fragmentary vertical section taken on the line 5-5 of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6, a perspective view of another form of rack in accordance with the invention;

FIG. 7, a fragmentary portion of FIG. 6 drawn to a considerably larger scale; and

FIG. 8, a perspective view of yet another form of rack in accordance with the invention.

Referring to the drawings: The embodiment of FIGS. l'4 is fabricated from steel tubing of square cross-section to provide two open, rec

tangular frames 10 and 11 of equal height intersecting and crossed at right angles, see 12 and 13, so at least the lower crossing 12 is flush with the adjoining horizontal frame members 10a and 11a exteriorly of the frames to serve as a base which will seat fir-mly against a supporting surface, such as a sales floor. Preferably, for the sake of both appearance and maximum structural strength, the upper crossing 13 is also flush with the adjoining frame members 10b and 11b, and the intersecting frame members of both crossings are welded together, as indicated at 14.

The frames stand vertically, as shown, and are well adapted to receive hanger bars 15 from which clothes hangers 16, or other similarly hooked hanger devices for handbags, jewelry, and various other articles, can

. be hung.

For anchoring the hanger bars 15 at selected heights within the frames 10 and 11 and between the vertical frame members 10c, 10d and 11c, 11d thereof, it is preferred to utilize conventional anchoring means affording a wide range of adjustability. Thus, in the form illustrated, transversely slotted channel strips 17 are attached, as by means of screws 18, FIG. 4, to the inside faces of respective vertical frame members, and holding means in the form of saddle-shaped fittings 19 are removably secured in selected slots 20 by means of insert members 19a and 19b thereof, see FIG. 5. To provide a wide range of height adjustability for the hanger bars, each strip has a web 17' spaced from the vertical frame member and provided with a vertical series of closely spaced, transverse slots 20.

With the hanger bars 15 extending across the respective frames and secured to the vertical frame members thereof in vertically spaced relationship with one another, as illustrated in FIG. 1, long garments 21 or other articles can be hung from a bar 15 in one frame, while shorter garments 22 or other articles can be hung from upper and lower bars 15 in the other frame. The articles of merchandise can be grouped as desired to enhance the overall display appearance of rack and contents.

Within the broader concepts of the invention, a variety of different forms of racks can be constructed.

For example, the rack of FIGS. 6 and 7 comprises intersecting and crossed, vertical, rectangular frames 25 and 26, which are longer in the horizontal direction than in the vertical. A square center post 27 is provided between the opposed lower and upper intersection points 28 and 29, respectively, and carries anchor strips 30 on all of its sides for cooperation with corresponding anchor strips on opposing sides of the corresponding vertical frame members 25b, 25c and 26d, 260, respectively.

Hanger bars 31 radiate from the center post 27, and, since they do not cross one another, may be set at the same level, as illustrated, if and when desired.

Another form of rack conforming to the generic concepts of the invention is shown in FIG. 8. Here, although the several frames 40, 41, and 42 are of the same height, frame 40 is considerably longer than are the cross frames 41 and 42 adjacent opposite ends thereof. Because of the great length of frame 40, a post 43 is provided at its mid-point, which, in effect, divides the long frame in two and provides an intermediate support for separate longitudinal hanger bars 44 anchored at selected heights as previously described. Additional longitudinal hanger bars 45 may be provided between the two cross frames 41 and 42 at opposite sides of the long frame 40, and transverse hanger bars (not shown) may be provided across the respective cross frames, if desired.

Whereas there are here illustrated and described certain presently preferred forms of the invention, it should be understood that various changes may be made and various other forms constructed Without departing from the disclosed inventive subject matter particularly pointed out and claimed herebelow.

I claim:

1. A merchandising display rack, comprising intersecting and crossed, vertical frames of rectangular formation and substantially equal height fabricated from rigid metal tubing, polygonal in cross section and connected in mutually flush relationship at points of intersection of said frames; hanger bars adapted for removable insertion within and transversely of said frames; and anchoring means for holding said hanger bars securelywithin the frames, said anchoring means including vertical series of transverse slots formed in strips secured to and along the inner faces of respective vertical members of said frames, and holding means for opposite ends of the respective hanger bars, said holding means being saddleshaped fittings adapted to be secured in'selected slots of said strips and to securely seat respective ends of the hanger bars.

2. A merchandising display rack in accordance with claim 1, wherein the hanger bars are of such length as to extend almost completely across an individual frame, substantially from one of the vertical frame members thereof to the other.

3. A merchandising display rack in accordance with claim 1, wherein a vertical post substantially square in cross-section extends between and is rigidly secured to mutually opposed, upper and lower intersection points of the frames; wherein series of said strips and transverse slots are provided for the four sides, respectively, of said post; and'wherein the hanger bars are of such lengths as to extend substantially from respective vertical frame members to corresponding sides of said post.

.4. A merchandising display rack in accordance with claim 1, wherein there is an elongate frame and other relatively narrow frames intersecting and crossing said elongate frame between the ends thereof; and wherein there are hanger bars extending longitudinally of and Within said elongate frame and other hanger bars extending longitudinally between the cross frames.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 161,554 3/1875 Rowe 211 17s 2,056,544 10/1936 Vanderveld 211 123 2,221,934 11/1940 Ferris 28754 2,326,507 8/1943 Welch 217 2,962,170 11/1960 Best 211 1s2 2,963,173 12/1960 Barnes 211177 3,021,961 2/1962 Ruhnke 211177 3,164,260 1/1965 Seemann 211177 FOREIGN PATENTS 403,400 9/1924 Germany. 1,316,970 12/1962 France.

CLAUDE A. 'LE ROY, Primary Examiner.

W. D. LOULAN, Assistant Exaniiner. 

1. A MERCHANDISING DISPLAY RACK, COMPRISING INTERSECTING AND CROSSED, VERTICAL FRAMES OF RECTANGULAR FORMATION AND SUBSTANTIALLY EQUAL HEIGHT FABRICATED FROM RIGID METAL TUBING, POLYGONAL IN CROSS SECTION AND CONNECTED IN MUTUALLY FLUSH RELATIONSHIP AT POINTS OF INTERSECTION OF SAID FRAMES; HANGER BARS ADAPTED FOR REMOVABLE INSERTION WITHIN AND TRANSVERSELY OF SAID FRAMES; AND ANCHORING MEANS FOR HOLDING SAID HANGER BARS SECURELY WITHIN THE FRAMES, SAID ANCHORING MEANS INCLUDING VERTICAL SERIES OF TRANSVERSE SLOTS FORMED IN STRIPS SECURED TO AND ALONG THE INNER FACES OF RESPECTIVE VERTICAL MEMBERS OF SAID FRAMES, AND HOLDING MEANS FOR OPPOSITE ENDS OF THE RESPECTIVE HANGER BARS, SAID HOLDING MEANS BEING SADDLESHAPED FITTINGS ADAPTED TO BE SECURED IN SELECTED SLOTS OF SAID STRIPS AND TO SECURELY SEAT RESPECTIVE ENDS OF THE HANGER BARS. 